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LOS ANGELES (CBS) — Southland grocery workers and union officials staged a rally Monday in another push for a new contract, stressing they do not want to go on strike, but they will if they don’t believe they are receiving fair labor offers from the owners of Ralphs, Vons and Albertsons.

Negotiations between the union and grocery stores are scheduled to resume Aug. 29 with the help of a federal mediator.

Members of the United Food and Commercial Workers union employed at stores from Santa Barbara County to the Mexican border have been working without a contract since March 6. More than 90 percent of those who voted Friday and Saturday agreed to authorize a strike, according to the union.

“Our members overwhelmingly authorized a strike because they want a fair contract, not a walkout,” UFCW Local 770 president Rick Icaza said Sunday.

Under the current industry contract offer, workers would pay about $36 per month for individual health insurance, or $92 per month for family coverage. But the union says the insurance fund would not be financially viable and wants the supermarkets to contribute more to the health care fund to prevent it from running out of money within 16 months.

No tentative agreement on wages has been reached.

A 141-day strike in 2003-04, which cost the stores an estimated $1.5 billion, led some customers to make long-term changes to their shopping habits by going to independent grocers and specialty outlets. Both sides agreed that they were both hurt by the last strike. “We don’t want another strike, but we need to protect our health benefits for ourselves and our families,” said Mario Frias, a Ralphs employee.

Mickey Kasparian, the president of UFCW Local 135, said a federal mediator would continue to work toward a resolution, but a strike could be called in five or six days if there are no positive developments.